Review: Bob’s Burgers “Yes Without My Zeke”

Overview:

Jimmy Jr. is concerned that Zeke is going to be sent to a disciplinary school after he continues to get detention. Unfortunately, Zeke already left a prank over the weekend. The Belcher kids agree to help rectify the graffiti he left at the school so Zeke’s dad doesn’t change his school.

Meanwhile, Randy is shooting a new film and rents the restaurant out for the whole day. Bob has a difficult time sitting by quietly after he realizes that there are so many issues with the script. Things get worse when Bob has to become part of the film.

Our Take:

Bob’s Burgers is always at its very best when the kids are up to one of their classic heists. The three Belcher children are always scheming, and this episode is just another example of their talents. Louise, ever the leader and planner have put together another grand plan. This time she is busy saving someone that she has no attachment to at all. Which just goes to show that she just loves making plans and getting up to no good.

Tina has much more emotional investment with her ongoing jealousy of Zeke’s relationship with Jimmy Jr. The entire time she is ready to throw in the towel so that she can have Jimmy all to herself. It makes for some great comedic moments but says much more about her character. When everyone else is ready to give up, Tina regretfully saves the day, showing that she loves Jimmy so much that she would do anything to see him happy.

By far, the standout in this episode is guest star Damon Wayans Jr. playing the undersized student Arnold Adams. The half-sized child is initially brought in for being the only person small enough to fit inside of the school windows. However, with his orange karate belt and tendency to violence, he proves more useful than the crew expects. The child considers himself Batman in his seriousness, and he shows off his skills when he is relied upon to throw a stapler really-super far. Honestly, this may be one of my favourite characters to ever appear on a show that is littered with talent.

Unfortunately, this means a wrap on the ninth season of Bob’s Burgers. Maybe the writers were being meta when they gave Gene the line “they said we would never be able to pull it off just like the Band-Aid on my testicles.” Audience numbers for the show maybe plateauing out, but episodes like this one show that the series is still at the top of its game. Perhaps I am a sucker for a good heist story in a comedy, I mean it worked for Ant-Man, but this was a fun episode. Mix in Damon Wayans Jr., and there isn’t much that they could have done better to end the season.

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Jesse Bereta

Jesse (Green Onion) Bereta is a chef of words. Classically trained in the kitchen, Jesse changed careers in ‘015 to pursue his passion of writing (and being a full time pop culture nerd). Aside from his work as a freelance writer, Jesse also operates his own website, podcasts, and is a father of two budding sprouts. The Green Onion headquarters is located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.